


Cuddly Toy.

by KnightShadows



Category: Toy Story Series (Movies)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-25
Updated: 2014-03-25
Packaged: 2018-01-16 23:29:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 14,702
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1365688
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KnightShadows/pseuds/KnightShadows
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Takes places years after TS3. At long last Bo has been reunited with Woody and the others, but it's far from the happy ending she dreamed about as feelings and relationships have changed over the years. Can she deal with these changes or hurt others in the process of trying to make things the way they were?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter one

**Author's Note:**

> The song 'Cuddly Toy' written by the Harry Nilsson inspired me, The Monkees also sang it too. The song is about a guy giving a girl the brush off, but it's got an upbeat sounding tune. I also want to test out some OC's too.

Bo was in a never-ending cycle she couldn't escape: Being bought and sold from garage sales, to second hand stores.

"Oh, what a sweet, adorable lamp!" They'd say. "It will be perfect in our baby's room!" But the baby would start to grow and soon say, "I'm too old for this baby-lamp."

And then bye-bye Bo.

She wasn't alone through, however - she did have her sheep - but she missed her friends. All of them; new and old. But Woody was the one she missed the most. She's never had another lover quite like him. She wished that her next owner owned him, too.

The toys all liked their new owner, Lulu. She was a great kid, just like all their past owners had been. But Lulu had already had a favorite toy by the time the gang had arrived: Beautiful Daring Darla the circus star doll.

She came with her own remote-controlled horse called Lady and, thanks to the magnets in Darla's foot and in Lady's saddle, Darla could trick ride. Woody took not being the favorite with a grain of salt. It wasn't easy getting along with Darla as she was not so nice - actually, in truth, she could be down-right mean, but Woody did his best for Jessie's sake since Darla and Jessie were now very best friends and as Bullseye had a crush on Lady; Darla's horse. And, though Buzz denied it, Woody and all the other toys could see that he had a crush on her. But the Divine Miss D. (as Darla was called by the other toys occasionally) either couldn't tell that he had a crush on her or just didn't care and simply chose to ignore it.

It was Lulu's birthday party today and there was worry and panic over whether Lulu would get better toys. Some things never change. There would be an outdoor party and only Darla and Lady could be with Lulu at the party.

Woody stood frowning, wishing he could have planted some listening devoice in the backyard.

"Oh, my gosh!" Jessie exclaimed, jumping up down on the windowsill. "I don't believe it!"

"What?" cried the other toys, rushing to join her.

"A pony! A real live pony!" Jessie said with aw.

"Oh no, Lulu will never want to play with us now if she has a real pony," Said Rex.

"I think her parents just rented it," Woody pointed out.

"Oh, wow… Lulu's riding it with Darla!" Jessie said. "Darla's so lucky!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Woody drawled dryly, rolling his eyes as he casually put his arm around Jessie's shoulder.

"She's not that bad," Jessie said. "She is my very best friend, after all."

"And what about me?" Woody asked. "As I recall, I used to be your very best friend."

"You still are and you're also my very best…" Jessie paused, seeing that Buzz was near by and whispered the rest in Woody's ear, making the Sheriff smile.

"I wish I was down there with her," Buzz murmured.

"Lulu or Darla?" Jessie asked.

"Darla… I-I-I mean Lulu!"

"Right," Woody said, unbelievingly. "Come on Jess, let's leave Buzz alone to moon over Darla."

"I am not mooning over Darla!" Buzz shot back, keeping his gaze on the beautiful circus-star doll.

"What does he see in her?" Woody asked when he and Jessie had walked away.

"Her outer-beauty mostly," Jessie answered.

"Well, that's understandable,"

"It is?" Jessie questioned tensely.

"Well, I mean Darla is a well-built doll and…" Woody stopped when he noticed Jessie glaring at him. "Not to say that you're not well-built. I mean - I always thought you were," Woody rambled, nervously.

"Oh really?" Jessie questioned. "What's my best feature?"

"Your hair. It's so long and red and I just love running my fingers through it."

Jessie seemed appeased by this. "Well, seeing as how much you love my hair, how about later tonight I let you pull the ribbon from my hair, shake my hair loose and let you run your fingers through it?"

"It's a date!" Woody said, happily.

"And later, you can re-braid it," Jessie told him.

The party ended and the guests left.

"Lulu, I know you don't like your gift from Aunt Ivy, but you shouldn't have told her that," Lulu's mother told her.

"Why?" Lulu asked.

"Because it's not nice," Her father said. "Now, where do you want your circus play-set things?"

"On the floor."

Bo was the lamp Lulu was given. She had been placed on the dresser, getting a bird's eye view of the room. She saw Buzz first, then Hamm, followed by Slinky, the Potato heads, the three aliens, Rex, Jessie, Bullseye, and, finally, Woody. She could have leaped out of joy at seeing all of them again, especially Woody.

Leave! She wanted to scream at Lulu, but the little girl was busy playing with Darla and the others. Finally, dinnertime came Lulu left the room.

"Pink elephants and lemonade!" Cried Darla with joy. "The circus train! The big top! The costumes! The lions, tigers, and bears!"

"Oh my," Woody admired.

"Someone had to make that joke," Hamm said.

"And elephants, giraffes, gorillas, and a little doggie too!" Darla continued in glee. "Who wants snuggles with Darla?" she asked her animals, gleaming.

Buzz took a step forward, but Woody stopped him.

"I don't think she meant you," Woody suggested.

"Um…" Buzz began. "You should be careful around the bears," Buzz said to Darla.

"What are you talking about?" Darla asked. "They're just Teddy bears."

"That's what I'm afraid of," Buzz admitted.

"Listen here, you Spooky Space Kook!" Darla said, haughtily. "Don't you dare malign my animals with your past adversaries! Besides, you're just jealous that I have pets! You don't even have a space-dog with an antenna."

"Did she just call me a 'Term of Endearment'?" Buzz asked Woody.

"I don't think so," Woody answered. "Jessie! Don't pet that elephant! It might gore you. They might like Darla, but we must remember that these are wild animals and we have to… Oh wow, camels!" Woody said, going over to them. "You know they wanted to use camels for the Pony Express, but they scared the horses. Hey, Bullseye, come here and say 'hi' to the camels! Bullseye?" Woody looked around to see his horse hiding, afraid of the camels. "Come on out, Bullseye - you don't need to be afraid. Now, come on out."

Bullseye shook his head.

"Jessie, help Bullseye get out from his hiding," Woody asked her.

"Sure thing."

It took Bo forever - in her perspective - to climb back down. She wanted to run up behind Woody and surprise him. She'd throw her arms around his waist and whisper something devilish into his ear. But she didn't get the chance; Rex saw her first.

"Bo?" He questioned uncertainly.

"Yes, Rex - it's me. It's really me!"

"Oh wow! Hey everyone Bo's back!" He shouted.

All of Andy's old toys whirled around and Darla noticed that suddenly Woody seemed nervous and that Jessie seemed sad.

'This needs looking into,' She thought.

Mrs. Potato Head rushed forward to greet her old friend.

"It's so good to see you!" Mrs. Potato Head exclaimed.

"And it's so good to see all of you. Oh, Woody, it's just wonderful to see you again." Bo drawled dreamily, stepping towards him.

"Yeah, it's…um…good to see you too, Bo," Woody said, nervously taking step back and away from her.

"Still as shy as ever, I see," Bo commented, laughing.

"Not as much as you think," Woody said, uneasily. "Um… ah, you remember Jessie and Bullseye and everyone else, right?"

"Of course. I've never forgotten any of my friends - especially you, Woody. I've never forgotten you."

"And we've never forgotten you, either. So I guess you should meet the toys you don't know?"

"I believe that's my cue," Darla said. "I'm Beautiful Daring Darla. You may call me Darla, The Divine Miss D., or Mistress."

"Who calls you 'Mistress'?" Bo asked.

"Welcome to Lulu's room," Darla went on, ignoring her. "I'm in charge here."

"What?" Bo asked, incredulous. "But Woody's always been in charge; he's the leader,"

"Haha," Darla chortled. "What rubbish. He has no power here. Now stop trying to stir up trouble before someone drops a dollhouse on him."

Woody instantly looked up in fear.

"Like I said, I'm in charge and no one is going to usurp me."

"And fight any man-toy who tries!" Buzz said, holding up a fist.

"Buzz," Woody began. "You know that 'usurp' means 'trying to take over someone's power', don't you?"

"Yes, I know that. Nothing's wrong with defending a lady's honor, is there?" Buzz said, hastily.

"Now, I have just one little rule that you need to follow," Darla said.

"My dear," Bo began, starting to dislike Darla. "I know the rule about not coming alive in front of humans."

"That's not my rule. My rule is - don't touch my things without my permission!"

"And if I do?" Bo challenged, tempered.

"I'll break something off of you."

"Did you hear what she said to me?" Bo gasped looking towards the others, outraged.

"That's actually an improvement," Jessie said, speaking for the first time. "When we first met her, she threatened to kill any of us if we did."

"So, Bo," Mrs. Potato Head began. "Why don't you tell us what you've been up to all these years?"

"Oh, yes. We do need to catch up, don't we? I can't wait to catch up with you later, Woody."

"We have a lot to talk about," Woody said.

"Right, talk," Bo agreed, winking.

As the other toys gathered around Bo to hear her tales, Woody took Buzz aside.

"What am I going to do?" Woody whispered to him.

"You're asking me?"

"Who else am I going to ask? Oh, man, I never thought I'd ever see her again. I don't know what to do."

"I think you just need to be honest with them, no matter how hard it is."

"Right, right… Honesty is the best policy… But, no matter what, you'll have my back… right?"

"To infinity and beyond."

Stories of their past adventures were exchanged. Eventually, it was almost time for Lulu to come back and go to bed.

"Woody," Bo said, sweetly. "Would you help me back up to the dresser?"

"I…uh…" Woody began to mumble, looking around the room for Jessie; she was talking to Darla. " Sure."

"How about later tonight, when everyone's asleep, you and I catch up on old times?" Bo suggested with a wink once they were on the dresser. She used her crook to pull him closer to her.

Woody stiffened before moving the crook from his neck.

"I'm sorry Bo, I can't. Jessie and I have a date tonight," Woody said trying to break it to her gently and not going a very good job.

"What?" Bo asked in great surprise.

"We've been seeing each other romantically for the past few months now."

"But what about Buzz?"

"It's called Bromance, and it just means that Buzz and I are really close friends. Lulu is going to be back any minute now - I need to get back to my spot. Tomorrow, when she's at school, we'll talk more." Woody said to her before climbing back down.

Bo was left so stunned she could barely think straight. Woody wasn't supposed to be with anyone - and certainly not Jessie! Buzz liked Jessie and Jessie liked him, didn't she? It didn't make sense... Was Woody lying to her? Or maybe he'd break up with Jessie to be with her again and then Jessie and Buzz would get together? Bo just didn't know what to think.

Later that night ,when the house was asleep, Woody and Jessie went out into the hall.

"You okay?" Woody asked her.

"I wasn't sure if you'd keep our date or not," Jessie admitted.

"It's the woman's prerogative to change her mind - not the man's," Woody joked.

"It's just… With you and Bo being reunited after all these years, I wasn't sure if you needed some time to think about what you wanted."

"Hey," Woody said, softly cupping her face. "I already know what I want and who I want to be with. So have a little faith in me and in us, okay?"

"I will," Jessie answered.

"Things are going to be a little awkward for awhile, but we can work through them."

Darla crept through the room with the nimbleness and the silence of a cat towards Buzz's faint glow. She shook him awake, clamping her hand down on his mouth to keep him from crying out and dragging him into Lulu's closet. Buzz didn't know whether to be excited or scared. As much as he found himself attached to her, he was pretty sure Darla was psychotic.

"Can I help you?" Buzz asked, carefully. Darla looked rather frightening that night, wearing an outfit called the Spider Queen. It was an all-black body suit, laced with silver threads like spiders webs, her long black hair in a high ponytail. Her pale face gave the illusion of almost floating in mid-air. Yes - he certainly did not want to get on her bad side, again.

"The delicate balance of Lulu's bedroom has been disrupted by the arrival of that figurine," Darla said with slight distaste.

"You mean Bo?"

"Sweetie, I don't have time to beat around the bush. You know what's going on - now talk."


	2. Chapter two

Cuddly Toy.

I don't own Toy Story or any of it's characters. I do own any and all original characters.

Woody sat in his spot as Lulu got ready for school. His mind was racing. He knew he had been too abrupt with Bo last night, but he'd felt like he'd had no other choice. He didn't want to do anything that would lead her on in the slightest. That would only ever end up hurting both her and Jessie, and he wouldn't want to deliberately hurt either of them for the world.

Yet, there was something inside him that was aching because of Bo.

He didn't know what to say to her. Deep down, he knew what she wanted to hear, but he couldn't bring himself to say it. His feelings for her were no longer what they had once been.

Buzz thought back to his conversation with Darla the night before.

"Bo and Woody used to be together," Buzz told her.

"As what?" Darla asked.

"As a couple… You know, the romantic sense?"

"I see," Darla said, thoughtfully. "As Jessie's best friend, I must look out for her the best I can. And you are Woody's best friend. He confides in you."

Buzz suddenly didn't like where this was going.

"Darla," Buzz began, firmly. "I'm not going to betray Woody,"

"I know that," Darla hissed at him. "I do understand loyalty to a friend."

"I-I'm sorry. I thought you were going to ask me…"

"I know what you thought and what everyone else thinks," She sounded slightly hurt. "There isn't anything either of us can do," She finalized, beginning to walk away from him.

"There is one thing," Buzz said. Darla turned and looked at him. "Be there for our friends." Darla said nothing and continued to walk away.

With Lulu now at school, her mother being away at work and her father working downstairs in his home office, the toys once again were free to come alive.

Woody walked over to Jessie first.

"Hey howdy hey," He greeted.

"Hey howdy hey yourself."

"I don't want you to jump to the wrong conclusion, but I thought I'd go up to the dresser and have talk with Bo. Just to see how she's doing," Woody said, talking her hand in his.

"Still playing leader, huh?" Jessie questioned with a smile.

"Not exactly," Woody said. "Yesterday, I wasn't my most charming-self with her when I told her about us. I just want to make sure she's okay."

"I understand," Jessie reassured, squeezing his hand. "Darla wants to have a fashion show and I promised I would help her set it up. You can tell Bo she's invited, too."

"I will… Jess?"

"Yeah?"

"You and Bo are going to get along, aren't you?"

"We always did before."

"Yeah, but that was different."

"Was it?"

"Hey… Maybe you can ask Darla to lend you Lady tonight so the four of us can double date?"

"Four of us?" Jessie probed.

"Yeah. You, me, Bullseye, and Lady."

"It's a date."

Bo watched them unable to hear what they were saying. Were they breaking up? Was he letting her down gently? It didn't look like they were. Bo had wanted to wake up to have everything be a long, bad dream - but it hadn't been. She wasn't in Andy's room (old or new), or Molly's room, or even in the Davis household. All Bo wanted to do was break down and cry in Woody's arms. He was coming towards her now and Bo felt like she could barely stand.

"Hi," Woody greeted when he reached the top of the dresser. "Darla's having a fashion show today. You're invited to come and watch."

Bo couldn't take it anymore, so she threw herself in Woody's arms.

"Why, Woody? Why?" She sobbed.

Woody held her, but not in the way he used to. Not in the way she needed to be held. Woody could have made a joke about women and fashion, but he didn't.

"Why what?" Woody asked, simply, though he knew the question.

"Why are you with her? Why haven't you broken up with her?"

Woody had to hold himself back so he wouldn't snap at her. He could understand the question concerning why he and Jessie were together - that was a normal question - but questioning him as to why he hadn't broken up with Jessie just because they had reunited was infuriating him. Nonetheless, he had to take into account Bo's state of mind. She had received a great shock from all of this: Being reunited after all these years with her feelings still intact for him only to find out that he had moved on with an old friend.

Now he had to think of how to answer her without hurting her more.

"Bo," He began, softly.

"There were others," Bo said.

"What?" Woody asked, confused.

"Other male dolls that I was involved with," Bo confessed to him. "I was so lonely without you, Woody!"

"Bo, you don't need to explain anything to me," He told her, gently.

"They didn't mean anything to me, Woody! So I can't understand why you're with her!"

"No, Bo - you don't understand! Jessie's means the world to me."

"How can you say that?" Bo asked, sounding nearly hysterical.

"Because it's true. Bo, look, you need to understand…"

"It can't be true," She said, determined not to believe him. "Woody, please tell me that you're just helping Jessie make Buzz jealous, because I know they had feelings for each other!"

"They did," Woody confirmed, helping Bo sit down. "They were together for awhile when we were owned by a little girl named Bonnie."

"Were you that lonely and jealous that you had to steal your best friend's girl?" Bo asked, sounding angry and hurt.

Woody couldn't control his anger anymore.

"Is that really what you think of me?" Woody asked her, his voice sounding so angry and cold that it scared her some. "That I'm such a weak and petty toy, that I'd stab my own best friend in the back like that? That I'd use Jessie just so I could feel something? Let me tell you something, Miss Bo Peep! Jessie and I got together long after she and Buzz broke up and, before that, I was involved with another doll when we lived with Bonnie. Her name was Dolly, but, like with Jessie and Buzz, things just didn't work out."

"Then she's using you," Bo said, still not coming to terms with everything. "She wants Buzz back and she's using you to get to him."

"Jessie's not like that! You may find this hard to believe, Miss Peep, but there are other females who find me attractive besides you!" And before Bo could say anything else, Woody climbed down the dresser.

"Baa?" belted Bo's sheep in concern. Bo turned and threw her arms around them.

"I can't lose him again!" She sobbed.


	3. Chapter three

Cuddly Toy.

I don't own Toy Story or any of its characters. I do own any and all original characters.

After a few minutes Bo composed herself. She wasn't going to win Woody back by just sitting there hugging her sheep. She shook her head. No - she didn't like the sound of that. It sounded petty; Woody wasn't some trophy. Bo resolved herself not to be angry with Jessie. Jessie was trying to get her man back, so Bo was going to help her understand that she was going about it all the wrong way.

By the time Bo had reached the floor, it was almost time for Darla's fashion show and Mrs. Potato Head insisted that Bo accompany her to it.

"I hope you don't think too badly of Darla," Mrs. Potato Head said to Bo. "The doll can be a hot-potato most of the time, but she really is a capable leader."

"You can't mean to tell me that, that self-important doll really is the leader of Lulu's toys!" Bo said, shocked.

"Well, she was the leader before we arrived, so half the toys here were already loyal to Darla and I think Woody wanted to take a break from being the leader. He has been doing it so long."

"I'm sorry, but I just can't see her as being a good leader."

"She gives good advice," Mrs. Potato told her. "When we first came here, my spud and I were having marital problems. We seemed to be fighting all the time; I felt he was spending too much time with our boys and not enough with me. Woody - bless him - tried to help by telling us that we should talk out our problems, but we just ended up fighting again. So Darla said, since we're not getting along, the only thing to do was to have a trial separation for a whole month. She told us to have no contact with each other unless during playtime."

"She told you two to break up?" Bo asked, shocked more than ever now.

"But it worked! Not talking to each other for a whole month made us realize how much we loved and missed each other. Absence makes the heart grow fonder."

"I know" Bo said softly.

…

Meanwhile earlier; after Woody's disastrous talk with Bo, Woody felt the need to talk to Buzz. Bo's words were bothering him. It wasn't her accusing Jessie of using him; it was the fact that she said he stole his best friend's girl. Even though Buzz had given them his blessing and had told Woody to tell Jessie how he'd felt about her, Woody felt that he now needed to know for sure that he hadn't betrayed Buzz. He told Buzz what he and Bo had said to each other.

"Buzz," Woody went on, nervously. "Do you feel that I stole Jessie from you?"

Buzz sighed and Woody braced himself for the worst.

"When I first began to see that the two of you were developing romantic feelings for each other, I was upset at first. Part of it was vanity, wondering what Jessie saw in you that she didn't see in me - any thing more or something that she never saw in me? Why was she falling for you of all toys? I guess there was a part of me that didn't want to believe she could feel that way about any other toy but me, even if I no longer had those feelings for her. I did feel angry at you at first for falling for my ex-girlfriend. I could understand why, but still my best friend and my ex-girlfriend? I couldn't deal with it at first, but then I saw that you weren't acting on your feelings. If anything, you two were pulling away from each other and I could see how much that hurt the both of you. That's when it dawned on me: You two were willing to sacrifice your own chances of happiness to keep from hurting me. Keeping my friendship and seeing me happy was more important to the both of you than your own happiness. I don't know if that's right or wrong, but it made me feel like I must be some special and wonderful friend for the two of you to do that."

"You are Buzz," Woody told him.

"Well that got me thinking: if I'm such a wonderful friend, how can I let my two best friends be miserable when I know they could be so happy together? That's why I told you to tell her and gave you both my blessing. Woody, I never thought you stole Jessie from me. Jessie and I couldn't make each other really happy and we couldn't give each other what we both wanted and needed, but you two do and knowing that Jessie is happy and is getting what she wants and needs makes me happy. And knowing you're happy makes me happy, too." Buzz finished, patting him on the shoulder.

"Thanks Buzz," Woody said. "Needed to hear that."

"Anytime, pal," Buzz said with a warm smile. "So what are you going to do about Bo?"

"I just don't know," Woody admitted, sounding pained. "Buzz? Do you think that maybe you could talk to her?"

"Me?" Buzz asked, disbelievingly. "Woody, Bo and I were never that close. I wouldn't know what to say to her."

"I know it's a lot to ask, but couldn't you tell her what you told me? Maybe coming from you, it will help her come to terms with everything better?"

"All right, but mind if I talk to her after Darla's fashion show? I don't want to miss it."

"You want to go to Darla's fashion show?" Woody asked, raising a painted eyebrow. "Are you sure you'll be able to handle it?" Woody probed, now teasing him.

"What are you talking about?" Buzz asked, huffing.

"Darla's costumes tend to look pretty scanty-clad on her. Your wings may just pop right off you."

"That is not why I'm going to the fashion show!" Buzz quickly protested. "I think I got her mad at me…again, and I thought that if I told her she looks beautiful in as many outfits as possible in one day, it might make her less mad at me."

"Good luck with that, buddy."

The fashion show was to be held in the big top play-set with Darla's travel trunk wardrobe doll case as a changing room. A makeshift curtain and lions, tigers, and elephants were to keep any peeping toys away. Jessie's job was to announce the names of the outfits Darla was wearing.

Bo nodded to the other toys inside the big top play-set. There was a Hello Kitty plush, some Disney princess dolls, and a few sew dolls that either folded up into cupcakes or muffins. And then, much to Bo's surprise, Buzz was there, too. He waved shyly at her, whilst the other toys exchanged amused glances with each other.

"Now remember to 'ooh' and 'ah' when Darla comes out in a different outfit," Jessie told them, reminding them of what they should do.

Bo was so bored, watching Darla prance around from outfit to outfit and having to hear and 'ooh' and 'ah' at her. What added to it was that Buzz was saying 'beautiful' (Bo convinced herself that Buzz was saying this about Jessie). Together, this was enough to make her want to crack herself.

Finally! It's over! Now Bo could talk to Jessie.

"Jessie," Bo began.

"Yes, Bo?" Jessie asked, smiling sweetly.

"I…" Bo started, suddenly losing her nerve.

"Yes?" Jessie said, good-naturedly.

"I-I just wanted to say I enjoyed the fashion show," Bo said hastily before running off.

"Bo?" Jessie questioned softly as she watched Bo leave, wondering if she should follow her. She decided not to in the end. Bo wasn't ready to talk to her yet and Jessie wasn't going to force her too.


	4. Chapter four

Cuddly Toy.

I don't own Toy Story or any of its characters. I do own any and all original characters.

"She's an odd one," Darla said, coming up behind Jessie.

"Not really," Jessie told her. "It's just - well - she and Woody used to date."

"I know," Darla said off-handedly.

"How do you know?" Jessie asked, a bit suspicious.

"I have my ways," Darla said, smugly.

"Buzz told you, didn't he?"

"Does it matter if he told me?" Darla asked her. "I need to change back into the outfit Lulu left me in. Follow me."

Jessie rolled her eyes at Darla's flippant attitude, but followed her anyway.

"I'd keep a close eye on Woody and Buzz if I were you," Darla said from behind the curtain.

"Woody and Buzz?" Jessie asked. "Why?"

"They're conspiring stupidity. Normally, I wouldn't tell you since they do it all the time, but this time it involves you."

"What?" said Jessie, completely bewildered at what Darla was getting at.

"I don't know what," Darla went on, coming out wearing her original outfit. It was a strapless purple sequined leotard with a matching sewn-on tutu decorated with sequins and glitter. Darla bent down and tugged on one of her purple faux knee-high lace-up boots. "Buzz refuses to betray any confidence in what Woody has said to me. Loyalty to a friend - admirable, but annoying," She commented, placing a feather in her hair. "I swear, sometimes, Buzz can be perfectly useless." Darla finished by putting on her short cape.

"And other times?"

"Well, he is good for keeping a doll's self-esteem up," Darla told her simply.

"Woody and I have a date tonight," Jessie began.

"That's nothing new."

With a shy smile, Jessie asked, "Mind if I borrow Lady tonight?"

"Double date with the horse again?"

"Yep," Jessie said with a sigh.

"Its kind of pathetic when you think about it."

"I think it's kind of cute."

"You would," Darla said.

…

Bo couldn't understand what had made her lose her nerve like that. Well - in all truth, it would be in bad taste to just walk up to Jessie and say 'I know you're using Woody to make Buzz jealous.' That'd be a terrible thing to say! And besides, Bo was sure Jessie would've denied it. The thing to do, Bo reasoned finally, was to talk to Buzz. She needed to get his conformation that he still loved Jessie. Then, they could talk to both Woody and Jessie together.

Now, all she had to do was find Buzz.

Buzz wasn't sure how he should approach Bo to bring up the topic of Woody and Jessie's relationship. He thought about asking Darla for advice - that doll was as bold as brass - but then, he realized that she would most likely take it upon herself to set Bo straight. And then who knows what Darla might do to poor Bo?

"There you are, Buzz," Came Bo's sweet voice.

"Bo, I just…" Buzz began.

"I saw you at the fashion show," Bo said, coyly. "And I know that a certain doll has something to do with it."

"No, no! It's not what you think!" Buzz said, panicked. "Darla being scantly-clad had-had nothing to do with it! I'm not a space-perv! I'm not!"

"Buzz - calm down. I'm talking about Jessie," Bo told him.

"Jessie?" said Buzz, confused. "Jessie isn't scantly-clad. I don't think she can be."

"No! That's not what I meant!" Bo said getting exasperated. "I know you went to the fashion-show to see Jessie. I heard you calling her beautiful."

"No. I went to the fashion show to see Darla and I was calling Darla beautiful," Buzz informed her.

"Darla?" Bo repeated in disbelief. "Why would you tell her she's beautiful?"

"Because she is."

"But what about Jessie?"

"Well, I think Jessie is beautiful, too," Buzz told her honestly.

"Then you are still in love with her," Bo confirmed with a thankful sigh.

"No, Bo - I'm not."

"But you have to be! How could you not be anymore?" Bo asked desperately.

"Up elephants! Up!" Came Darla's voice. Both Bo and Buzz turned their heads and looked at her, only to see she was making the elephants do tricks. Bo saw the look on Buzz's face as he watched her.

"No!" Bo cried out in horror. "Not her! You can't be in love with that…that Darla!"

"Of course not!" Buzz quickly protested. "Darla's not even my type! She's not a redhead, she towers over me, she's mean, calls me names and she hits me."

"She hits you?" Bo asked, shocked.

"Only when she thinks I'm being a pervert," Buzz admitted, embarrassed.

"You? A pervert?" Bo said, incredulous. "But you're so innocent! You didn't even know you were a toy at first!"

"You see - I have this Spanish mode that did something."

"What?"

"I'm not sure...I think I walked in on her while she was dressing! All I know is, when I turned back into me, Darla was there in front of me holding one of her dresses up to her chest and hitting me on the head with her baton whilst screaming and calling me names. It wasn't my fault! Lulu was playing with me and saw the little hole in my back and put an unbent paper-clip in it."

"Buzz, what are you talking about? What do you mean 'your Spanish mode'?" Bo asked him, perplexed.

So Buzz went on to tell her all about his Spanish mode and how that had helped him and Jessie become a couple in the first place.

"But Bo, listen, I'm not romantically interested in Jessie anymore," Buzz told her. "And I wouldn't even want to be in a romantic relationship with Darla. Yes - she is the most beautiful, incredibly well-built doll that I've ever seen. But she more like an evil alien Empress temptress, whose plantet I crash-land on and, whilst tending to my wounds, she tries to turn me against Star Command," Buzz said, huskily, his wings popping out at the thought. "In a gold bikini, chaining me to the wall when I refuse, trying to break my will with her…" Before Buzz could finish his fantasy, Darla's baton came crashing down on his head making his wings pop back in.

"Space-perv!" Darla snapped before walking away.

"She heard all of that, didn't she?" Buzz asked. sounding dejected.

Bo nodded, somewhat appalled by what Buzz had been saying.

"She's never going to like me," Buzz said, walking away from Bo forgetting why he'd even been talking to Bo in the first place.


	5. chapter five

Cuddly Toy.

I don't own Toy Story or any of its characters. I do own any and all original characters.

Bo stood there somewhat shocked by Buzz's behavior. Buzz wasn't as innocent as he used to be from the last time she saw him.

Bo shook her head thinking about what Buzz had said about his Spanish mode. If Buzz was suppressing his feelings for Jessie (which Bo believed he was) then maybe turning on his Spanish mode was the only way. But how could she manage it?

Woody had watched Bo and Buzz talk and shook his head, sighing when he saw Darla hit Buzz on the head. When would that space toy learn to keep his little fantasies about Darla and Star Command to himself?

"Hey, you," Jessie said from behind him. Woody turned around and took Jessie in his arms. He knew there was a chance of Bo seeing them and he knew it would mostly hurt her, but Woody was tired of holding back his feelings for Jessie. Besides, Bo was going to have to come to terms with him and Jessie being together eventually, no matter how bitter it was going to be.

"Darla said I could borrow Lady tonight," She told him.

"Perfect," Woody said, smiling. "Once the whole house is asleep, Bullseye and I will race you girls to the backyard and the losing rider has to kiss the winner," He said with a smirk.

"Hope you're not going to be a sore loser, then," Jessie said.

"Of course not - I'm going to win," He told her.

Before Jessie could respond, however, she and Woody could both sense that they were being watched. They turned their heads and saw Bo looking at them. Her face displayed a mixture of emotions from sadness, jealousy, anger, bitterness, and even a little pity, as she truly believed Jessie was using Woody.

Woody bit back a sigh. Seeing him and Jessie together was hurting Bo and he didn't want to hurt her, even if she had hurt him by accusing him and Jessie of being dishonest about their feelings for one another. He just wasn't sure what to do.

"Woody?" Jessie said, cutting into his inner musing. "If you want to be more considerate of Bo's feelings, I'd understand."

"You mean hold back?" Woody asked, hesitantly. "I don't think I can do that."

"Let's go somewhere private and talk," Jessie suggested, taking Woody's hand and leading him behind the big top play-set, away from prying eyes - though not ears.

"I don't mean hold back," Jessie continued. "I mean not being so kissy-face in her face."

"Well, it's not like I was planning to kiss you non-stop in front of her," Woody said.

"I know that," Jessie said. "I just mean it must not be easy for her see us together when she still has feelings for you."

"Has Bo said anything to you about how she feels?" Woody asked Jessie, gingerly

"No, but I could tell she still feels the same way about you by the way she was talking to you last night. Woody, how did Bo take it when you told her about us?"

Suddenly, Woody had a vision of what Jessie would do if he told how Bo really felt and what she had said. He could just see Jessie storming off to find Bo in blind rage. If there was one thing Jessie hated more than anything, it was to be called a liar. They'd get into a physical fight and Jessie would end up breaking off Bo's arms, she'd feel remorse at what she'd done, the whole room would be up in arms, and Jessie would feel so guilty that she might even run away! Woody couldn't have that.

"Well," Woody said. Then, as if becoming distracted by the end strands of Jessie's hair, he began to play with Jessie's yarn. "It came as a bit of a shock to her. She just needs some time to process it all."

"Process it all?" Jessie repeated as Woody began to untie and retie her hair ribbon.

"Like I said, it was a shock to her. I mean - how would you feel if it was you and you found out that Buzz and Bo were dating?"

"I could actually see that," Jessie muttered.

"Right," Woody said, slowly.

"No, I really think they'd make a cute couple."

"Well, if you plan to do any match-making, leave me out of it. Okay?"

"Don't worry - the only romantic relationship I'm interested in is our own. But, Woody," Jessie said, seriously. "You're sure everything's okay with you and her, right?"

"Like I said earlier, things are awkward. But," Woody said, now looking Jessie in the eyes. "What's important is that Bo knows that you and I are together and that I am completely and totally committed to being with you."

Jessie smiled in response.

"I think the best thing to do," Woody went on. "Is to just leave her alone for now and let her come around when she's ready."

"Yeah, that's what I've been thinking too," Jessie said. "I don't want to force my friendship on her when she's not ready for it yet."

Unbeknownst to them, Bo had followed them and had went into the big top play-set to eardrop on them. She quickly exited before Woody and or Jessie noticed her, her head swirling with what she'd over-heard. Still not willing to face the truth, she tried to make sense of what she'd heard.

'Jessie must want to end her fake relationship with Woody,' Bo thought with hope. 'She knows Woody still has feelings for me, no matter what he says, and she's trying to see if he'll become jealous by suggesting me with Buzz!'

"What were you doing inside the big top?" Came Darla's harsh voice, cutting into Bo's thoughts.

"Nothing," Bo said, slightly startled.

"Why did you go in there?" Darla asked her, bending down to Bo's level.

"No reason," Bo said.

"Ah, ah, ah! You are fibbing, fibbing, fibbing!" Darla said in a singsong voice. "Now confess!" Darla demanded, pointing her finger at Bo.

"I'm not confessing to anything!"

"You're plotting something against Woody and Jessie, aren't you?! Something that involves dismemberment! Now confess!"

"What?" Bo asked, more shocked than ever. "That's crazy! Why would I do something like that?"

"Heav'n has no rage like love to hatred turn's/ Nor Hell a fury, like a woman scorn'd. William Congreve said that," Darla told her. "Now confess! Confess! Confess! Confess!"

"No!" Bo yelled at her. "You're crazy!" She said, running away.

"Confess!" Darla yelled, running after her.

"It looks like Darla's at it again," Commented Hamm with a sigh.

"Yep," Added Slinky. "I wonder what she's accusing Bo of?"

"Who cares? Just as long as it isn't me."

As Bo ran from Darla, she was shocked at the fact that no one was coming to help her.

'Oh Woody… Where are you when I need you?'Bo thought desperately. Finally, she spotted Buzz sulking in the corner of Lulu's room and ran to him.

"Buzz! Buzz! I need help!" Bo said, running to him.

"What's wrong?" He asked. "Did you break yourself?"

"No, Darla!"

"You broke Darla!?" Buzz cried, alarmed.

"No! Darla is after me!"

"What did you do?"

"Nothing!" Bo exclaimed frantically. "Buzz, you have to help me. I think she's going to hurt me!"

"All right, get behind me and I'll see if I can calm her down," Buzz told her.

"There you are!" Said Darla, charging at them. "Confess!"

"Now what's going on?" Buzz asked.

"Stay out of this, powder monkey!" Darla snapped.

"Is that a term of endearment?" Buzz whispered over his shoulder to Bo.

"I don't know - focus Buzz!" Bo told him.

"Darla, whatever you think Bo did, I'm sure she didn't do it," Buzz said.

"You're in on this too, aren't you?" Darla demanded.

"What are you talking about?" Buzz asked, flabbergasted.

"Don't think for a minute that I didn't know what you were up to from the moment you were brought into this room," Darla said, crossing her arms.

'For the love of Star Command! What did Bo do to get Darla so worked up like this? Where's Jessie when I need her? She's the only one who can calm Darla down when she gets like this,'Buzz thought. Aloud, he said, "Darla, I have no idea what you are talking about."

"I think you know," Darla said. "Now confess!"

"But!"

"Confess!"

"But!"

"Confess!"

"But!"

"Confess! Confess! Confess!" Darla yelled.

"All right, all right!" Buzz retaliated, unable to take Darla's yelling anymore. "I confess that I-l…" But, before he could say anything else, Bo turned him into Spanish Buzz! Bo had seen the little hole in the back of Buzz…

'All is fair in love and war,'Bo thought, pushing the little button hoping that her finger wouldn't break off.

"Cara Bella!" Spanish Buzz cried, looking at Darla.

"Oh no!" Exclaimed Darla in horror. "Now see what you've done!"

Spanish Buzz looked over his shoulder to see who Darla was speaking too. Seeing Bo, he said, "Hola senorita," He turned back to Darla. "Mi carino, sus ojos como brillantes joyas," He said, taking her hand to kiss it gently. Darla recoiled her hand before he could.

"Stop it!" She cried in horror once again. "You might get paint smudges on my perfectly polished plastic hand!" Darla cried before running away.

"Mi amor! ¿Por que se ejecuta desde mi?" Spanish Buzz called out, running after her. "¿No sabéis que sois la única mujer en el universo para mí?"

"Help, Big Sheba! Help!" Darla yelled. In response to her call, an elephant trunk sounded and a large toy elephant ran up to her side. "Help me get away from him! He's being persistent!"

Hearing this, Big Sheba wrapped her trunk around Darla's waist and lifted her into the air.

"Soltar su usted bestia!" Spanish Buzz exclaimed, pointing his laser at the toy elephant.

"Step on him, Big Sheba! Step on him!" Darla instructed once she was sitting on the back of Big Sheba's neck.

Bo just stood speechless as she watched Big Sheba try to step on Buzz whilst he, in turn, dodged and fired light from his laser.

"Never a dull moment here - that's for sure," said Mr. Potato Head, walking by.

Looking at the chaos in front of her and how no one seemed to want to do anything to stop it, Bo finally cried out in despair. "Oh Woody! Where are you?"


	6. chapter six

Cuddly Toy

I don't own Toy Story or any of its characters. I do own any and all original characters.

Woody and Jessie did eventually reappear.

"What the…?" Woody pondered when he saw the bizarre scene before him.

"Woody, you've got to do something!" Bo cried throwing her arms around Woody's neck, making Woody stagger back.

"Jessie," Woody said. "Do something!"

"What?" Cried Bo.

"Me?" asked Jessie. "Why me?"

"She's your very best friend!"

"You're just afraid she'll make Big Sheba step on you," muttered Jessie.

"Woody isn't afraid of anything!" Bo said, trying to defend him.

"She'll be more careful with you," Woody said, ignoring Bo.

"Woody!" Bo yelled. "Buzz is in danger! He's your best friend! You're the leader!"

"I'm not the leader anymore!" Woody proclaimed, then breathed deeply. "Stop saying that before she makes the elephant step on me."

"The elephant has a name, you know," Jessie told him.

"What is wrong with you two?" Bo demanded. "Buzz needs help!"

"He's seems to be holding his own," Woody observed.

"You guys! What if Darla hurts him?" Bo said, clearly exasperated.

"You're right, Bo, Darla needs to calm down before things get out of hand. I might as well be the one," Jessie said, giving Woody a strange look.

Woody suddenly realized the position that he and Bo were in. He became anxious. What if Jessie thought he didn't want to help because he wanted to be in Bo's arms?!

"You know what?" Woody began. "There's safety in numbers. I'll go with you," He said, peeling Bo's arms off of him and taking Jessie's hand.

"Um, hey, Darla…what are you doing?" Jessie asked carefully.

Upon hearing Jessie's voice Spanish Buzz whirled around looking panicked.

"Mi flor del desierto!" He exclaimed. "Puedo explicar!"

"What wrong with him?" Woody asked as Darla and Big Sheba made a hasty exit.

"I don't think he knows that he and I aren't dating anymore. And why is he in his Spanish mode?" Jessie said.

"What!?" Woody exclaimed jealousy, taking over his common sense. Holding Jessie's hand firmly in his, he marched over to Spanish Buzz. "Listen here, mi amigo!" Woody said, poking Spanish Buzz in the chest. "Jessie is not your flor de desierto! She is my yellow rose of Texas!"

"We're from Texas?" Jessie said. "I thought our show took place in Arizona."

"She is my woman! Mine! She belongs to me. Do you understand?"

"I belong to you?" Jessie questioned, slightly annoyed.

Spanish Buzz looked blankly at Woody, not understanding what he was saying. To get his point across, Woody grabbed Jessie, pulled her into a dip and kissed her long and hard.

Well, so much for not kissing Jessie non-stop in front of Bo...

"He never kissed me like that!" Bo yelled, jealous and upset.

"First time he ever kissed me like that!" Jessie muttered dazed by the kiss.

"See?" Woody said to Spanish Buzz.

Spanish Buzz looked thoughtful before turning to Jessie,

"Usted y El Vaquero?"

"Si! He encontrado mi uno sólo verdadero amor," Jessie said, still dazed.

"Entiendo, tener buen cuidado de mi amigo," Spanish Buzz said to them. Suddenly, Spanish Buzz realized Darla had gone. "Mi amor! Debo la de bestia!" He cried, running off.

"What did you say to him?" Woody asked her. Jessie shook her head.

"Never mind what I said to him! I'm mad at you!"

"Me? What did I do?" Woody asked.

"Talking like you own me! I am not an object," Jessie told him.

"Well, you know, technically you are," Woody said digging a hole for himself. Jessie narrowed her eyes at him, not amused by his response. "And you are the object of my affections, Snuggle Bunny," He said weakly.

"You don't own me, Woody, I don't belong to you." Jessie told him, hands on her hips.

"You are my woman," Woody said, taking her hands in his. "And I think we belong together."

"Belonging to someone and belonging together are two different things," Jessie told him. "I'm going to go find Darla."

Once Jessie had walked away, Bo turned on Woody feeling hurt and angry.

"You never had a pet name for me!"

"I didn't?" Woody asked, nervously rubbing the back of his neck.

"And didn't you ever once think that we belonged together?" She said, pleadingly.

"I…" Woody began unsure as to what to say, realizing that his behavior had hurt her deeply. "Bo, I'm sorry. I don't mean to hurt you, but I love Jessie and I want to be with her."

"Don't say that!" Bo cried. "Don't say those things! You're only going to end up with a broken heart! She's using you, Woody! I know she is!"

"Bo, you need to stop this!" Woody said, trying to keep his temper in check.

"But…" She began.

"I don't want to hear it," Woody said, walking away.

Bo put her hands over her face. No matter what she said, all she kept doing was pushing Woody away.

….

"You want to tell me what happened?" Jessie asked Darla. They were in the Big Top play-set. Darla was sitting on her swing hugging her knees.

"He," Darla began. "He-he tried to kiss my hand!"

Jessie forced herself not to roll her eyes. Darla had body image issues and possibly a fear of intimacy. Jessie didn't quite understand it, but she wasn't going to make fun of her.

"And that's bad because…?" She asked her.

"He could have gotten a paint smudge on my hand and then I'd be disfigured!"

"We could always wash it off," Jessie suggested.

"Not if it stained my vinyl!" Darla said, truly horrified.

"That's still no excuse to try and have Big Sheba kill him!" Jessie said.

"I wasn't trying to have Big Sheba kill him," Darla said with an air of indifference. "I was trying to get him back to his other self. At least then he knows not to invade my personal space."

"That's true," Jessie said. "His non-Spanish side is scared of you."

"As he should be," Darla said, sounding quite pleased.

"By the way," Jessie said. "How did Buzz's Spanish mode get activated in the first place?"

"That figurine did it," Darla said with distain.

"You mean Bo?" Jessie asked wide-eyed.

"Who else would I mean? Really, Jessie, keep up with things!"

Jessie rolled her eyes at Darla. Jessie knew from experience that it was pointless to get to mad at Darla since she didn't seem to understand that you were mad at her.

"Why would Bo do that?" Jessie asked, instead ignoring Darla's remark.

"It's part of her plot!" Darla said with conviction.

"What plot?"

"Her plot to dismember you! And then once you're out of the way, she'll compromise Woody in his moment of weakness and convince him to try and take over leadership with Buzz as their right hand henchman."

"Seriously Darla, seriously?" Asked Jessie. 'Where does she come up with these things?'

"Don't worry, I won't let her dismember you," Darla said cheerfully.

"Thank you," Jessie said. "Darla, do you really think Bo wants to get Woody back?"

"Yes," Darla told her. "She's obviously still in love with him."

"What makes you think that?" Jessie asked softly, feeling worried about her relationship with Woody.

"Because she has the same stupid look on her face when she sees Woody as you do when you see him too. And you are in love with him."

"Darla, not so loud!" Jessie said, worried that Woody might hear.

"What are you so worried about? You're dating him and, besides, he's in love with you too," Darla said in her offhanded way.

"Did he tell you that?"

"No, but it's written all over his face whenever he sees you. Which is everyday."

Jessie was silent. It was true - she was in love with Woody, but she hadn't told him yet. They had both agreed to take their relationship one step at a time. They didn't want to go too fast or too slow. Saying I love you to him after only dating him for a few months might be going too fast and, now that Bo was here, she wasn't sure if she should tell him yet. What if Woody thought she was only saying that because she was afraid of losing him to Bo? And was she? Darla thought Bo wanted Woody back, but Darla also would accuse the dolls of becoming vessels of the dead. Jessie shook her head. She was not going to become the jealous lover - that was Woody's job. She couldn't help smiling, remembering what had happened a little while ago. That kiss had been something else. She didn't know if Woody loved her, but after that display of jealousy and that kiss, he certainly didn't regret being with her.

"I think you should sit on him," Darla said.

"Woody?" Jessie questioned.

"Who else have we been talking about?"

"Who else? We've been talking about Buzz, Bo, and Woody!"

"Yes, in that order!" Darla said, getting annoyed with her.

Jessie couldn't take it anymore. Yes. Darla was her very best friend, but even she needed a break from her!

"I'm going to find Woody," Jessie said.

"Make sure to sit on him," Darla said as Jessie began to leave. "And don't tell anyone where I am."

When Jessie left the Big Top she bumped right into Woody who was standing right outside the entrance.

"I wasn't eavesdropping!" Woody quickly said. He had been and Jessie knew it, which meant he'd overheard Darla saying that Jessie was in love with him. Jessie would have been embarrassed if she hadn't remembered what Darla had said about Woody and seen the smile on his face.

Jessie put her hands on her hips and leaned close to Woody, her face inches from his and said.

"I may just be in love with you."

"Good," Woody replied. "Because I may just be in love with you."

Bo again watched them from across the room not hearing what they were saying. Why did they have to look so happy together? Why? She thought unhappily.


	7. chapter seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N Time for the title song written by Harry Nelson. A/N

"Big Daddy's coming!" Hamm called.

"Big Daddy?" Bo asked.

"Lulu's father," Mrs. Potato Head told her.

The toys scrambled to their spots and became lifeless. Woody grabbed Spanish Buzz, clamped a hand over his mouth and hid behind some stuffed animals. Bo barely made it up to the dresser in time. Big Daddy came in carrying a laundry basket filled with Lulu's clothes. He was listening to his iPod and began to sing along with the song he was listening too.

"La, la, la, la,

You're not the only cuddly that was ever enjoyed by any boy

You're not the only choo-choo train that was left out in the rain

The day after Santa came

You're not the only cherry delight that was left out in the night

And gave up without a fight

You're not the only cuddly toy that was ever enjoyed by any boy.

Listening to Big Daddy sing as he folded and put away Lulu's clothes, Bo tried not to let the words of the song affect her.

You're not the kind of girl to tell your mother

The kind of company you keep

I never told you that I'd love no other

You must of dreamed it in your sleep

You're not the only cuddly that was ever enjoyed by any boy

You're not the only choo-choo train that was left out in the rain

The day after Santa came

You're not the only cherry delight that was left out in the night

And gave up without a fight

You're not the only cuddly toy that was ever enjoyed by any boy.

You're not the kind of girl to tell your mother

The kind of company you keep

I never told you that I'd love no other

You must of dreamed it in your sleep

You're not the only cuddly that was ever enjoyed by any boy

You're not the only choo-choo train that was left out in the rain

The day after Santa came

You're not the only cherry delight that was left out in the night

And gave up without a fight

You're not the only cuddly toy that was ever enjoyed by any boy.

La, la, la, la."

He finished the song and his chore and left the room.

'What an awful song,' Bo thought sitting down and hugging her sheep.

'Poor Bo,' Jessie thought watching her.

Soon enough, Lulu came home from school. She had the TV on in her room as she did her homework. The sound of Circus sounding music filled the room. Bo didn't pay too much attention until she heard Darla's voice. Bo looked on in shock.

Darla was on the TV, only she was in human form.

'Is she based on a real person?' Bo wondered idly. 'No wonder she's so full of herself!' Bo watched as human Darla turned into cartoon Darla. Bo didn't want to watch the show, but she had no choice.

She was surprised how similar the cartoon-Darla and toy-Darla were. The only differences seemed to be that the cartoon version was more toned down, less crazy and that she apologized when she was wrong.

All and all it wasn't a bad show, but that didn't mean Bo had to like it or her!

With her homework finished, Lulu began to play. Bo sighed inwardly. She already knew Lulu wasn't going to play with her, and she missed being played with. She frowned internally, not liking how Lulu was playing with Woody and Buzz, making both boys sound pompous.

Playtime ended when dinnertime came, then more playtime and then bedtime, and then finally the whole house was asleep. This meant it was time for Woody and Jessie's date.

Bo watched them leave Lulu's room on toy horseback. She climbed down off of the dresser to follow them and Darla, noticing she was leaving, followed her. Bo knew it was wrong to spy on them while they were on a date, but she had to see how Jessie acted with Woody when she thought no one was watching. If Jessie was faking her feelings for Woody, Bo would able to tell and then she could convince Woody that it was all a lie on Jessie's part.

Both Jessie and Woody laughed happily as they raced. It had been a tie. Woody, still on Bullseye, leaned over to Jessie and kissed her. She kissed him back.

They ended up becoming so passionate in their kiss that they ended up falling off Bullseye and Lady. They laughed as they hit the ground. Bullseye and Lady trotted off somewhere to be alone.

Woody and Jessie rolled around the grass some more, kissing each other.

"Jessie, Jessie, Jessie," Woody murmured softly, laying on his back. Jessie was lying on top of him, her knees bent. "Why didn't we do this sooner? Why didn't we become us sooner?" He sounded so happy—so content.

Jessie smiled at him, "Because we weren't ready to become us sooner. We both needed to be in other relationships to learn what to do and what not to do to make it work."

"When did you get to sounding so wise?"

"You're rubbing off on me."

"You mean something else besides my face paint?" Woody asked, laughing.

"You want to hear a secret?"

"Do tell."

"I always had a small crush on you," Jessie told him.

"Really?" Woody said smiling, sitting up slightly.

"It was hard not to," Jessie said. "Everything at Al's apartment had your face on it and then...watching the 'Round Up' episodes…"

"And then you met the real thing," Woody said ginning wider.

"And you were something else," Jessie told him dreamily.

"So why didn't you do something about your crush on me back when we were in Andy's room?"

"I kind of wanted to," Jessie admitted softly. "But I didn't want to be 'that girl."

"What about after…" Woody said, trailing off.

"I didn't want to be your rebounded girl."

"You to know a secret?" Woody asked her.

Jessie nodded.

"I had a crush on you too," He told her.

"You did?" Jessie asked in wonder.

"Yeah. That was one of the reasons I decided to stay at Al's apartment and go the museum," Woody admitted. "I never met any toy like you before, Jessie. You're just so wonderfully different. I mean...what other toy would hug me upside down while dancing and then...when telling me about you and Emily, you just looked so sad and pretty that I just ended up following my heart and not my head."

"I thought you were flirting with me when we were playing rescue the chitters from the burning barn."

"You didn't flirt back," Woody said, pouting.

"Well, I thought, but I wasn't sure and I didn't want to make a fool of myself. How come you didn't do anything about your crush on me back in Andy's room?"

"I guess it's kind of the reason why you didn't do anything about it. And then stuff happened. Plus I was never good at making the first move."

"Could have fooled me," Jessie smirked.

"Well, I couldn't think of anything else to do to get you stop talking and listen to me."

"You know, if we'd gone to the museum as planned, we probably would have become us a lot sooner," Jessie told him.

"Yeah and making out behind the Prospector's box in the dark," Woody added grinning as he was thinking about it.

"I see you've thought about it," Jessie said.

"Oh, I've thought about that a lot."

"Why Sheriff Woody, have you been fantasizing about me?" Jessie asked playfully.

"Before we started going together, yeah," Woody once again admitted, this time rather nervously. "You ever fantasize about me?"

"Maybe," Jessie said coyly.

"Oh come on!" Woody said pouting. "I told you one!"

"One?" Jessie said surprised.

"I-uh-I…you know I love your hair, right?" Woody stammered.

"Maybe I don't want to know about that one," Jessie said. "Okay, okay... You know how we got off the plane and how we celebrated? Well, I always fantasized that, instead of me jumping on your back, you would have taken me in your arms and kissed me like there was no tomorrow."

"I can kiss you like there's no tomorrow now," Woody offered.

"Please do," Jessie said.

Woody obliged.

From her hiding stop in the bushes Bo could see and hear everything. She was stunned beyond well reason after hearing Woody talk.

"Why are you torturing yourself?"came Darla's voice. Bo turned around in shock. There was a gentleness in her voice that surprised Bo. Bo started at her for a few minutes wondering how she got there and how she hadn't noticed her before. Darla was in a bright red leotard with a matching red-feathered cape.

"Woody." "Jessie." The two toys moaned between kisses.

"Come away now," Darla told Bo, the same gentleness in her voice. She placed her hands on Bo's shoulders and led her away from the lovers.

"He never loved me," Bo muttered when they got closer to the house, shaking. "He never loved me. It was all a lie. He was going to leave me to be with her. He always wanted her. He never loved me," She wasn't really speaking to Darla, just talking out loud. Darla led her back to Lulu's room and watched her climb up the dresser.

'This is getting out of hand,' Darla thought.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Spanish Buzz gazing at her adoringly. 'Ugh' Darla thought before smiling at him and coaxing him to follow her with her finger. Once out in the hallway Darla slammed her baton on the top of his head.

"Ow!" Buzz said, trying to cradle his head. "What I'd do?"

"You've been keeping secrets little Space Man," Darla said putting her hands on Buzz's shoulders and picking him up so he was eye level with her. "Now talk!"

"Mother," Buzz whimpered in fear.

"Yes Sweetie, tell Mother Darla all."


	8. chapter eight

Cuddly Toy

I don't own Toy Story or any of its characters. I do own any and all original characters.

 

"I know something you don't know! I know something you don't know!" Darla said sang merrily to Woody and Jessie as she circled them.

"Are you going to tell us what it is?" Woody asked "Or are you just going to taunt us?"

"Bo followed you on your date last night," she told them, off-handedly.

"What?" Said Jessie, shocked. "How do you know this?"

"I know because I followed her. She saw and heard everything you two did and said last night."

"Everything?" Woody asked, mortified.

"Everything," Darla simply replied, studying her plastic nails.

Jessie was completely bewildered."Well, why would she follow us?" .

"Well," Darla began. "Woody knows why and Buzz knows why and even I know why. But you, sweetie..." She said to Jessie, leaning towards her and grinning. "Don't know why."

Jessie suddenly crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes and looked at Woody.

"What?" He asked nervously.

"The stupidity?" Jessie asked Darla.

"The stupidity," Darla confirmed.

"I think it's time to talk to Bo," Jessie said.

"I thought you were going to wait for her to come around," Woody said weakly, worrying what could happen when Jessie found out what Bo had been thinking.

"I don't like being followed and I also don't like you," -she said pointing to Woody- "keeping secrets from me!"

"Darla followed us too!" Woody pointed out, hoping he could stall Jessie and maybe misdirect her anger.

"No. Darla followed Bo," Jessie told him sternly. "There's a difference! And why are you trying to get me mad at Darla anyway?"

"I-I'm not!" Woody quickly said.

"Eyes on the prizes, Jessie, he's trying to distract you," Darla told.

"It's time the two of us have a talk with Bo right now!" Jessie said sternly.

"Right!" concurred Darla, throwing her fist up in the air.

"Let's go Woody" Jessie said, pulling him by his bandana.

A lot of things were running though Jessie's head. She felt violated for one thing: Bo had followed them and spied on them, witnessing her and Woody's intimate moments! She felt a sense of pity for Bo, however, after hearing what Woody had said. How must Bo be feeling, learning how Woody had harbored a crush on her while with Bo - that he'd thought about leaving her! Jessie briefly wondered if Woody truly meant what he said. Even though, as cruel as it was for Bo, Jessie wished with all her heart that it was true; that deep down Woody had always felt something for her before they were together, just as she'd felt something for him, even when she was with Buzz.

And that thought brought guilt.

Jessie had truly cared for Buzz when she was in a relationship with him and had 'liked', liked him and also wanted to be with him, but she had still 'liked', liked Woody deep down inside too. She had never led Buzz on and hadn't tried to make Woody jealous when she was dating Buzz. She had been happy in that relationship, just not happy enough...

Woody made her happy, so happy, and finding out that he was keeping something from her - something to do with Bo, his ex girlfriend - hurt, not to mention that Buzz and Darla knew what it was! She told herself not to worry; Woody had told her that he was completely and totally committed to her. But she couldn't shake her uneasiness.

They made their way over to the dresser with Darla in tow.

"Climb," Jessie said sternly to Woody.

Woody sighed, not looking forward to the confrontation that was going to happen within a few minutes. He gave Jessie a quick, what he hoped was a reassuring, kiss on the check and began to climb.

Bo stared numbly off into space; the shock from the revelations of last night had not completely worn off.

'What was I really to Woody?' She asked herself idly. 'Was I just someone to fulfill his needs? Or,' Bo began to think with hope. 'Maybe he was lying to Jessie? Maybe he really does love me and doesn't want to hurt Jessie.' Bo knew it was wrong to hope that Woody was using Jessie, but her strait of mind was desperately not wanting to believe that Woody's feelings for her were never as strong as hers for him.

"Woody," Bo breathed hopefully when she saw him climb to the dresser top. "Jessie," Bo said disappointment when she followed him up. "Darla?" Bo asked, puzzled, when she made her appearance.

"Darla?" Woody repeated, exasperated. "Why did you follow us? This has nothing to do with you!"

"Stop hyper-focusing on m!" Darla reprimanded. "It's not going to help."

"Why do I bother talking to her? Why?" Woody asked Jessie.

"You're doing it again," Darla told him.

"W-what's going on?" Bo asked them.

"That's what I'd like to know," Jessie said, her hands on her hips and her eyes narrowed. "Why did you follow Woody and I on our date last night? Why did you spy on us?"

"I…" Bo said, faltering; she had never seen Jessie this angry before.

"Well? We're waiting," Jessie said sternly.

"I wanted to see how you act around Woody when you're alone," Bo admitted to her.

"Why?" Jessie was truly bewildered.

"Because I just…I mean thought…I just needed to prove…"

"Prove?" Jessie questioned. "Prove what?"

"That-that-that," Bo couldn't say it; the words wouldn't leave her mouth.

"That you're using Woody to make Buzz jealous," Darla finished for her, dully.

Jessie looked completely shocked.

"Is-is that true Bo?" Jessie asked Bo. "Is that what you've been thinking this whole time?"

Bo just nodded.

"Darla, how did you find out about this?" Jessie questioned, rounding on her.

"Buzz told me and Woody told Buzz and Bo told Woody," Darla said casually.

Jessie turned to Woody looking very angry and hurt.

"So you knew about this too?" Jessie asked him.

"Yes," Woody admitted.

"Is there a reason you didn't think to tell me this?" Jessie asked, trying to keep the venom out of her voice.

"I didn't want to upset you?" Woody told her, his answer sounding more like a question than an answer. "And have you do something rash?"

"Do something rash?" Jessie sounded outraged. "What did you think I'd do? Run up here and demand a wrestle session to defend my honor and break her into pieces?"

"Well I…." Woody began.

"You did think that, didn't you!" Jessie accused, gasping.

"When you get angry, s-sometimes you don't think straight."

"How do you think I am? Darla?" Jessie said.

"No, of course not!" Woody quickly said. "It's just...I know how you can get sometimes and I didn't want you to do something that you'd regret later."

"In other words, you think I'm a rash, violent mad-doll woman!"

"No! That's not it at all!"

"I don't know who I'm mad at more," Jessie began. "You," She said pointing at Bo. "For thinking I'd do something so hurtful and sneaky to both Woody and Buzz or you," Jessie said now pointing to Woody. "For not telling me this and not trusting me to act reasonably about it. Not to mention you confiding in Buzz about this!"

"Jessie…" Woody said sounding pained.

"I don't even know if I can talk to either of you right now," Jessie said to them, her voice breaking.

"Maybe it's time for a girl-talk," Darla said soothingly, putting her hand on Jessie's shoulder.

"Jessie," Woody said desperately. "Please listen to me."

"We'll laugh, we'll cry," Darla continued.

"I don't want to listen to you right now," Jessie told Woody.

"But Jessie-"

"What part of girl-talk do you not understand?" Darla asked Woody.

"Darla," Woody snapped. "This is really none of your business! It's something that Jessie, Bo and I need to talk about! So will you just go away?"

Without saying another word, Darla went behind Woody, grabbed his pull-string and belt, picked him up and tossed him off the dresser.

Woody, Jessie and Bo screamed.

"Darla! How many times have I told you? You are not allowed to throw Woody off things!" Jessie yelled at her before climbing down the dresser to check on Woody.

Darla turned to a still shocked Bo.

"That Jessie has such a short attention span - she really needs to work on that. Hey, your sheep has three heads!" Darla exclaimed. "Wow, this would be such a great side show!"

'I'm up here alone with a mad doll woman!' Bo thought, alarmed.

"Um...Darla...you said something about a girl talk?" Bo asked her.

"Huh, what?"

"You wanted to have a girl talk?"

"Oh yeah, right," Darla said, forgetting about the sheep. "Alight sweetie. Tell me all about your cheap, torrid little affair you had with Woody."

"It was not a cheap torrid little affair!" Bo said huffing.

"Wasn't it?"

….

A small crowed of toys had gathered around where Woody had fallen.

"What happened Woody?" Buzz asked him, helping him up.

"She threw me off the dresser," Woody said, dazed.

"Who did?"

"Darla did."

"She's gone too far!" Buzz said, making a fist and hitting his palm with it.

"Woody, are you all right?" Came Jessie's concerned voice as she pushed her way past the other toys.

"Yeah, I'm fine," He told her.

"I don't care if she is the leader! Darla just can't go throwing toys around, willy-nilly! And I'm going to tell her so," Buzz said before climbing up the dresser.

"Good," Jessie said, ignoring Buzz. "Now I can still be mad at you and not feel guilty."

"Why are you mad at me?" Woody asked her. "I didn't do anything wrong!"

"Didn't do anything wrong? How about lying to me?"

"I never lied to you! I just didn't tell you what Bo said when you asked me how she took us being together."

"Well, withholding the truth is just as bad as lying in my book!"

"Jessie, please be reasonable?" Woody begged.

"Oh, now you expect me to be reasonable!?" Jessie asked him, exasperated.

….

"I see," Said Darla as she listened too Bo tell her about when she and Woody had dated. "What lead to your break-up?"

Before Bo could respond, Buzz appeared.

"Darla, I want to have a word with you!" He demanded angrily.

"What part of 'girl-talk' do you boys not understand?!" Darla said angrily to Buzz. "Why don't you have a belt?"

"Because I'm not bonus=belt Buzz."

"Well, you should be!" Darla stated before executing a good round kick and knocking him off the dresser.

"Continue my dear," Darla said sweetly.

…

Meanwhile at the foot of the dresser.

"Woody, I swear sometimes I think that you still think that being in relationship is just about kissy-face!" Jessie told him angrily.

"Of course I think that being in a relationship is more than just kissy-face!"

"AAHHHH!" Screamed Buzz as he fell, landing right in front of Woody and Jessie, making them jump into each other arms out of surprise.

"Buzz?" Woody said.

"What happened?" Jessie asked.

"Darla kicked me off the dresser," Buzz said, sitting up and sounding dazed. "My kind of woman!" He finished smiling, before falling back down.

"Boy am I glad I never wrestled with him," Jessie said, as they began to help Buzz up.

….

"So because you were sold while Woody was away at cowboy camp, the two of you never got closer," Darla said.

"If I had never gotten sold, Woody and I…"

"Would have still broken up," Darla told her, matter-o-fact.

"You don't know that!"

"Jessie and Buzz broke up and neither of them was sold."

"But…"

"Woody never loved you, you know that," Darla hissed in her ear. "You know he always wanted Jessie. How long do you think he'd have been able to continue living a lie with you while all-the-while wanting Jessie, fantasizing about Jessie, loving Jessie."

"I thought you were on my side," Bo whimpered.

"I'm on nobody's side," Darla told her. "I'll tell Woody you want to see him."

Woody wasn't sure what he was going to face as he climbed up the dresser to talk to Bo alone. Jessie was still too mad at Bo to talk to her, which was a good thing in a way Woody supposed.

"I guess we have a lot to say to each other, don't we?"

"I guess we do," Bo replied.

"Bo…."

"Was it all a lie?"

"Was what?"

"Us, Woody, us," Bo said.

"Bo, I cared for you a great deal…"

"But you never really loved me!" Bo shouted angrily. "All that time - it was a lie! You never really loved me!"

"Did I ever tell you I did!?" Woody shouted back.

"No," Bo said sadly. "At least you never lied to my face about that."

"Bo, I…"

"Yes, I know you cared about me! You cared about me so much that you were going to leave and go off to Japan and live with Jessie!"

"I didn't, did I? I came back, didn't I?"

"Yes, you came back. You came back for Andy, not me! And you came back with Jessie!"

"But I stayed loyal to you," Woody emphasized.

"But not in your head or heart."

"What do you want me to say, Bo?" Woody asked sounding tired.

"I want you to say…I want to you say that I meant something to you, that I was more than just someone to fulfill your needs!"

"You were Bo."

"Don't lie to me Woody!" Bo said, angrily. "Just because I want to hear it, it doesn't mean I want to hear it as a lie!"

"It's true that I was never was in love with you Bo," Woody began. "But that didn't mean that I didn't like you. I liked you a lot, Bo, and I wanted to be with you. When I came back and found out you'd been sold… Bo, I grieved for us for a long time and I missed you. I missed being with you... You were my girl, Bo and I did care very much about you and you did mean a great deal to me and I'm sorry it wasn't enough. I'm sorry it wasn't what you thought it was. I'm sorry I couldn't love you."

"If I had never been sold, what would have happened to us?"

"I think in time we would have broken up on our own."

"Oh, yes, your undying love for Jessie would have eventually come through." Bo said bitterly, turning away from him.

"Or maybe I would have realized that you deserve someone better than me..."

"Always making yourself the good guy in the end," Bo retaliated, turning sharply towards him.

"All right, I get it: you're mad at me. But I'm not going to bend over backwards to get you forgive me!"

"You used me, Woody!" Bo yelled, letting her hurt and anger take over.

"How did I use you?!" Woody yelled back. "What? Just because I had a small crush on Jessie and wasn't in love with you? There's no written rule that says you need to be in love with someone to be in a relationship with them!" His tone was harsh and Bo took a step back.

Woody sighed. "I'm tired of this Bo," He said. "There's nothing I can say or do to make things right with you and maybe I don't even want to anymore. This has gotten way out of hand. I'd moved on long before Jessie and I were together and, after Dolly and I broke up, I moved on again. Bo, you need to move on too."

"Woody…" Bo said her voice full of pain and love.

Woody moved close to her and it looked to Bo as if he was going to kiss her and as angry and hurt as she felt...Bo desperately wanted him too.

"Goodbye Bo," Woody whispered in her ear before leaving.

Once Woody was off the dresser he went in search of Jessie, knowing that she would want to talk to Bo as well. He found her with Darla. Both dolls were lounging with the big cats from Darla's play-line. Woody wasn't sure how he felt about Jessie being so close to toys that might end up hurting or killing her.

"I finished talking to Bo, " Woody said.

"I guess it's my turn now," Said Jessie getting up.

"Sit," Darla instructed Woody. "You look miserable."

"I feel miserable," Woody muttered as a toy Tiger jumped into his lap.

"Aw, Zsa Zsa likes you!" Darla said gleefully.

"Great," Woody said, unenthusiastically.

….

Jessie forced herself to keep her temper in-check. She felt insulted and violated. She was going to let Bo know how she felt and right now she didn't care how Bo was feeling. It wasn't as though Bo and Woody had been married or had broken up recently.

"Bo-" Jessie said when she reached the top of the dresser.

"Jessie I…"

"Don't!" Jessie snapped. "First thing's first: eavesdroppers deserve what they hear. That was a private moment between Woody and me! And you had no right to follow us, no matter what was running through your head! And while we're on that subject, you could have come to me and asked about my relationship with Woody! You could have asked about what happened between Buzz and I, but you didn't! You went around thinking the worst of me and plotting and scheming!"

"No, that's not true!" Bo cried. "I never thought the worst of you."

"So, using someone to make someone else jealous, makes them okay in your book?"

"No, I thought you needed help in the right way to get Buzz back."

"I don't want Buzz back! I am with Woody because he is the one I want to be with. He is the one I love. Whether or not you want to believe that is up to you. And that's all I have to say to you."

"Jessie…" Bo began.

"Goodbye Bo," Jessie said firmly before climbing down the dresser.

Bo hugged her sheep; she's never felt more alone than she did at that moment.

"Hi," Came Buzz's voice.

"What are you doing here?" Bo responded gloomily.

"I thought maybe you could use a friend/" Buzz said sitting down.

"I guess I've lost any chance of having Woody and Jessie for friends, haven't I?"

"I wouldn't say that. Woody and Jessie will come around just as long as…"

"I stop trying to make things the way they were," Bo finished for him. "Does it hurt? Seeing Woody and Jessie together?"

"It used to," Buzz told her honestly. "When I used to see the way Jessie would look at him when she thought no one was watching. She'd look at him with so much love and longing that it must have hurt, but that was all Jessie ever did. Until I told Woody to tell Jessie how he felt, he and Jessie didn't act on their feelings. They avoided each other because they didn't want to hurt me and for a while...I allowed it. I allowed them to be unhappy. I didn't want my ex-girlfriend and best friend to be happy for my own selfish reason: pride. I just didn't like the idea of Jessie feeling that way about anyone who wasn't me, even if I didn't feel that way about her anymore. But...seeing them unhappy began to hurt even worse. So when Jessie did come to me and told me about her and Woody wanting to be together, I told her I already knew and that I was happy for them and gave her my blessing, whether she needed it or not."

"If it were me, I wouldn't have given them my blessing!"

"We both know that's not true."

"What makes you say that?"

"Because you're not cruel."

"It hurts Buzz!" Bo cried, burying her head in his shoulder. "It's hurts so bad!"

"I know," He said, wrapping a nervous arm around her shoulder.

"It wasn't supposed to be like this," Bo sobbed. "I always thought that Woody and I would…."

"Things have a way of turning out differently than what you think it's going to be like."

"Buzz?" Bo asked, timidly. "Why did you and Jessie break up?"

"The short answer is we just fizzled out. We both had these different ideas of how a relationship should work and how you should act. I had the idea that I was going to be the perfect boyfriend and that being the perfect boyfriend meant never fighting with her and always agreeing with everything she wanted to do. It worked for a while, but then after awhile Jessie began to get fed up with me always agreeing with her and never having an idea or opinion of my own. She started suggesting we do really stupid things and tried to pick fights with me. But I just didn't get it. And, finally, Jessie broke up with me. I was glad in a way since I wasn't really happy anymore ether."

"Oh," Was all Bo could say. "So what's the story between you and Darla?"

"Darla is just a fantasy and, as the song says, sometimes a fantasy is all you need."

"Buzz...will you sit with me for a little while longer?"

"Sure."

….

Elsewhere in Lulu's room:

"I guess you're still pretty mad at me, huh?" Woody said to Jessie.

"Yep," Jessie crossed her arms.

"I just want you to know something: I never told Bo I loved her, because I was never in love with her. But, oh Jessie, I really do love you. I love you so much that I do stupid things and I'm sorry. I'm sorry I didn't tell you what Bo thought and I'm sorry I told Buzz and not you and I'm sorry Bo got hurt and I'm sorry I messed everything up and please, please don't break up with me," Woody pleaded.

"Oh, Woody," Jessie said softly, uncrossing her arms and placing them around him. "I'm not going to break up with you. I love you too."

Woody sighed in relief and leaned in to kiss her.

"But," Jessie said, leaning back. "I think we need to have a talk about being honest with each other."

"Aw, Jess, I learned my lesson already!" Woody moaned. "Instead of talking couldn't we be kissing?"

"Talking first followed by kissing," Jessie told him. "Lots of kissing."

"Lots of kissing?" Woody asked brightly.

"Lot's and lots of kissing," Jessie giggled. "But first talking."

From her own spot Darla observed both Woody and Jessie and Buzz and Bo.

"Balance," She said with a smile.

The end.


End file.
